Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Denver
Annual Report 2016-2017
Message from our Executive Director
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e proudly submit our 2016-2017 Annual Report to our wonderful members, without whom we would not enjoy the continued success of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute we all value. As in past years, we remain dedicated to maintaining our commitment to excellence and transparency. It is our responsibility to you, the members, to ensure the progress and financial stability of this amazing organization. This has been a year of balance and stability in the midst of many changes both within our organization and the world at large. We began the year with the first ever membership fee increase, our first change in Executive Director, and the world in turmoil. We end the year with a solid membership, a wealth of class offerings, and plans to enhance the class selection options for you, our members. This past year we offered 407 classes to our 2772 unduplicated members. Our WellAware program has over 100 members registered for hiking, biking and snowshoeing events. Our WorldView program featuring Spain this year, has drawn many members to learn more about Spain, it’s history and culture, with some members experiencing the WorldView Spain trip finale. Your enthusiastic support encourages us to venture even further into new and exciting arenas, both in the classroom and as we establish new sites and learning venues. OLLIon-Campus is one of the new ventures which will be launched in the fall of 2017. For those interested in attending classes on the DU campus conducted by college professors, DU researchers and community leaders, OLLI-on-Campus is for you. The drawing board is currently filled with possibilities to be launched this coming year and into the future thanks to each of you and your contribution to this amazing membership organization. Continued teaming with the University of Denver will be a focus in the coming year as we all begin to learn more about what DU has to offer our members. To that end, we stay focused on providing unique learning experiences of interest to you, our members. Stepping into the shoes of Executive Director of OLLI at DU was not an easy task. Thank you to each for your encouragement and assistance as well strive to create, explore and enjoy the learning journey.
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Barbe Ratcliffe, Executive Director OLLI at DU
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The past year marked a period of transition for OLLI at DU. I would like to congratulate Barbe Ratcliffe on completing her first year as the OLLI Executive Director. Her efforts and those of the OLLI site managers, their staffs, and the OLLI committees have made the transition seamless for OLLI members. I would like to thank all of those who have worked so hard to continue to make OLLI at DU THE place for intellectually curious adults to gather and share a wide variety of learning experiences. It is truly a pleasure to be a part of this vibrant community. Michael McGuire, Dean University College at the University of Denver
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Michael McGuire
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he Bernard Osher Foundation is a 37-year-old philanthropic organization headquartered in San Francisco supporting higher education and the arts. OLLI at DU first received financial support from the Osher Foundation in 2007 and have subsequently received two endowments. We are forever grateful for their support and commitment to our program. The Foundation serves a national network of lifelong learning programs for seasoned adults that currently operate on the campuses of 120 institutions of higher education from Maine to Alaska and Hawaii. The Foundation has not been highly prescriptive in the type of lifelong learning program it has chosen to support. While there is considerable variation among the Osher Institutes, common features remain prominent: Non-credit educational programs specifically designed for adults aged 50 and older; strong support from the leadership of the university or college; a diverse repertoire of intellectually stimulating courses; robust volunteer leadership; established mechanisms for evaluating participant satisfaction with educational offering; and sound organizational structure. OLLI programs across the United States also vary in their reporting status to their university or college.
Bernard Osher, Founder and Treasurer Bernard Osher, a patron of education and the arts, started The Bernard Osher Foundation in 1977 which seeks to improve quality of life through support for higher education and the arts. A native of Biddeford, Maine and a graduate of Bowdoin College, Osher has pursued a successful career in business, beginning with the management of his family’s hardware and plumbing supplies store in Maine and continuing with work at Oppenheimer & Company in New York before moving to California. There he became a founding director of World Savings, the second largest savings institution in the United States when it was purchased by the Wachovia Corporation in 2006. A collector of American paintings of the 2
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About The Bernard Osher Foundation
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When I moved to Denver several years ago, one of the first things I looked for was an OLLI program. I knew I’d feel right at home because the OLLI culture is so welcoming. I wasn’t disappointed! Ellen Phelps
mid-19th to the mid-20th centuries, Osher purchased the fine art auction house of Butterfield & Butterfield in 1970 and oversaw its growth to become the fourth largest auction house in the world. In 1999, he sold the company to eBay. Bernard Osher has been affiliated with a number of philanthropic and non-profit boards and currently serves as vice-chair of the American Himalayan Foundation. He is the recipient of numerous honorary degrees and is a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Barbro Osher, Chairman of the Board A native of Stockholm and a graduate of Stockholm University with a degree in languages and political science, Barbro Osher pursued a career in publishing and advertising in Sweden before moving to the United States in the early 1980s. She is Honorary Consul General of Sweden in California. For many years, she was owner and publisher of Vestkusten, one of the few SwedishAmerican newspapers in the United States, established in 1886 as a source of news from Sweden on politics, business, and sports as well as information on the active Swedish-American community in the West. Barbro Osher is the founder of the Swedish Women’s Educational Association (SWEA) chapter in San Francisco and was president of Positive Sweden/North America, an organization furthering the image of Sweden through educational activities in the United States. She serves on the boards of the University of California (Berkeley) Foundation, the American-Scandinavian Foundation, and the Nobel Museum in Stockholm. Mary G. F. Bitterman, President Before becoming President of the Osher Foundation, 1872 1754 Bitterman served as President and CEO of The James 1527 Irvine Foundation and before that as President and CEO of KQED, a major American public broadcasting center. She has served as Director of the Hawaii Public Broadcasting Authority, the Voice of America, the Hawaii State Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, and the East-West Center’s Institute of Culture and Communication. Bitterman currently is a director of Bank of Hawaii, Bay Area Council Economic Institute, Commonwealth Club of California, and the Hawaii Community Foundation, and she chairs the PBS Foundation Board. Bitterman received her BA from Santa Clara University and her MA and PhD from Bryn Mawr College. 3
Highlights from Our 2016-2017 Year
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onnie Wheeler, our founding Executive Director who retired, was honored at a special celebration hosted by the University of Denver in the Driscoll Ballroom on campus. Dean Michael McGuire welcomed over 150 invited guests (including Vonnie’s four adult children and seven of her grandchildren). A special surprise video titled “Vonnie’s Life in Acts” was shown and included interviews from those closest to Vonnie. The video began with photos of Vonnie as a child and ended portraying her diverse, wonderful and passionate personality. In 1996 with less than 100 members the first year, Vonnie guided our OLLI program to a record 5,244 registered members this year – an amazing accomplishment.
Vonnie & family
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OLLI is therapeutic for the mind and soul and provides nourishment to the entire body. Dr. Malcolm Tarkanian
We welcomed our new Executive Director, Barbe Ratcliff, who comes to us as an OLLI member, former President of the OLLI South Advisory Council, former Chair of the Curriculum Committee and an OLLI facilitator. With her vast experience with OLLI, Barbe also brings business acumen and a depth of understanding around organizational structure and behavior. We are excited to have her onboard and look forward to her many contributions in the years ahead.
This year OLLI South focused on defining and building its unique culture. A feeling of inclusiveness and honoring all volunteers became the central focus of the Advisory Council’s mission. The year began with an ice cream social for all volunteers during the previous academic year. This included not only our facilitators, but Curriculum Committee members, Advisory Council members, class assistants, Geek Squad members, and our greeters and office volunteers. They continued their theme with a Trivia night. All teams received extra “points” if their team consisted of a new OLLI South member. Needless to say, new members were in high demand, and everyone enjoyed a great evening. Hiking “hill and dale” every two weeks all year long, the OLLI Central WellAware hiking group celebrated their two-year anniversary. Their member leaders have shared legends, geology and history along the way and participants have learned that hiking during every season has its special rewards. Recognizing the importance of the social aspect of OLLI, the OLLI West Social Committee kicked into high gear hosting a pot luck dinner, a winter Spanish wine tasting (to compliment the WorldView Spain focus) and a spring old-fashioned ice cream social. Additionally, new Shared Interest Groups were created for members that included the Women’s Book Club, the Affinity Group for Creative Writers and a Chess Club.
We were pleased to learn that our OLLI program has been approved to be a part of the site feasibility study of the University of Denver master campus plan. The goal is to eventually have an on-campus dedicated OLLI facility that would house the OLLI Central classes and the OLLI administrative staff. We have begun significant plans for growing OLLI at DU beginning with opening an OLLI-on-Campus site with classes to be held at the University’s Ruffato Hall. These classes will be presented by professors and staff of Denverarea universities as well as professionals from local organizations. Additionally, we began work on securing another OLLI site – OLLI East – with plans to open spring of 2018. The goal of this site is twofold – 1) to lessen the burden of membership from the current OLLI Central site which this year has over 2,800 registered members and; 2) to recruit new OLLI members living in east metro area. 4
This year’s WorldView trip was to the Andalusia region of southern Spain. Twenty-two eager OLLI members enjoyed Andalusia’s Moorish spirit and a culture a thousand years in the making. They toured the Royal Palace and the Prada Museum in Madrid before departing for Seville and then on to Jerez, the Rock of Gibraltar, Malga, Costa del Sol, Granada and Cordoba. Everyone enjoyed the extraordinary diversity of landscape, lifestyle and culture present in this glorious region of Spain. The year ended on a high note with the three separate dinners honoring facilitators from each of our sites. All new facilitators were recognized plus all senior, master and diamond facilitators were individually acknowledged for their great achievements. At all three sites combined, we offered our members 407 varied and stimulating classes that were presented by 426 volunteer facilitators. Our volunteers are the heart and soul of OLLI at DU. Without their support, we would not exist. We continue to be extremely grateful for their contributions. 5
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s OLLI member Larry Matten stated, “Education does not stop when you graduate. Education is a lifelong process that keeps your mind young and empowers you to enjoy the world around you. Never lose the wonderment you felt as a child when learning something new. You can recapture that wonderment at OLLI.” Studies have shown that people who are involved in lifelong learning and social interactions are healthier and happier. Our OLLI program provides both stimulating learning and great social opportunities. In addition to our vast array of classes, we encourage our members to “keep moving” through our continuing WellAware program. Members have involved themselves in numerous walking, hiking, biking and snowshoeing groups. We have also formed the OLLI Chorale which has given voice to those who members who enjoy group singing and performing. The annual Bill Beaney International Symposium featured two expert professors presenting on the topic of “The Response of Two World Super Powers to the Results
of the U.S. Election.” Our members left with a very different understanding of how the world views our country and our recent election. Keeping our members engaged during the summer months, we continue to offer our popular Summer Seminars. Appealing to every interest, this year the eight seminars varied widely in topics from “Can John Elway lead the Broncos back to a Super Bowl?” to “The Reemergence of China as a Big Power.” OLLI at DU continues to moving forward with strong volunteer leadership from our three Advisory Councils (Central South & West) and our three dedicated and hard-working Curriculum Committees. The members of the Curriculum Committees developed and offered a total of 407 classes (an 11% increase over last year) in three terms. The classes were presented by our volunteer facilitators who share their time, expertise and passion so that our OLLI members can stay intellectually active and engaged in life.
OLLI South members registered
OLLI West members registered 1200
1500 1250 1000 750
891
1121
1364
1321
1000 800
400
250
200
OLLI Chorale
fy2014
fy2015
fy2016
0
fy2017
OLLI Central members registered
1095
fy2014
fy2015
fy2016
fy2017
OLLI Total members registered 5000
3000 2400 1800
1052
600
500 2271 0
891
1042
2220
2494
2824
4000
2828
3000
1200
2000
600
1000
0
0
fy2014
fy2015
fy2016
fy2017
4002
fy2014 6
7
4657
fy2015
5240
5244
fy2016
fy2017
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Our OLLI Program – Where “Curiosity Never Retires!”
My husband doesn’t know where I am since I’ve discovered OLLI. Where else can you meet so many interesting, fun, and stimulating people. Florence Welch
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Giving Opportunities
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• Active Minds
Supported through the Advancement Office at DU, our OLLI annual appeal fundraising efforts revealed the financial commitment of members who were willing to invest in the program. Our members recognize that giving back to OLLI can result in increased enhancements to the program such as updated audio visual equipment and improvements to classrooms.
• Cherokee Ranch and Castle Foundation
• Colorado Shakespeare Festival
• Colorado Jazz Group
• Colorado Heritage Center
In addition to the annual appeal the University of Denver has created a planned giving program for our OLLI members offering options such as gifts of stock, bonds, mutual funds, life insurance, bequests and retirement plan asset gifts. Planned gifts are an excellent way for our supporters to make a meaningful contribution to OLLI and help sustain the program in the years ahead. For more information about these donor opportunities and how they might meet specific planning needs and objectives, contact the Office of University Advancement at DU at 303-871-7469.
• Colorado Renewable Energy Society
• Denver Public Library
• Department of Interior Bureau of Reclamation
• Douglas County Land Conservancy
• Douglas County Library
• National League of American Pen Women
• Opera Colorado
• The Newman Center
• The Colorado Symphony
• The Denver Art Museum
• The Denver Center for the Performing Arts
• The Museum of Nature and Science
fiscally sound and sustainable program is a primary goal of OLLI at DU. Headed up by our dedicated volunteer OLLI/DU Budget & Financial Liaison, Robert Armstrong, our program managers and staff carefully monitor revenue and expenses monthly to ensure our financial stability.
The more you take part in OLLI, the more your brain will be growing and renewing. OLLI is brain food. Dr. Barbara Adams
Our Community Partners
Our Financial Picture Osher Endowment 12% $104,000
revenue
Registration Fees 88% $747,515
expenses Salaries 43% $364,707
Facilitator Support 13% $108,626
Rent 22% $186,233 Postage, Print 7% $62,078 Office Supplies 4% $38,799
Operating Net 2% $18,936
Expansion 7% $56,607
Meetings 2% $15,519
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e collaborate with many local organizations to enhance our programming for our members. These organizations offer space, lectures and classes and include:
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Our Management Team Barbe Ratcliffe, Executive Director
OLLI is very important to me. The choices of subjects, the caliber of the facilitators, plus the upbeat nature of my fellow students all contribute to an outstanding and unusual learning experience. An adventure not to be missed.
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Karen Lush
Barbe brings more than 30 years of senior management experience in the relocation industry, where she worked with fortune 100 companies as they relocated their employees around the United States and world. Barbe entered the business world thru the finance door with her CPA and experience at Price, Waterhouse and Cooper serving her very well. She stayed in the business world because of the people and the uniqueness each individual brings. Barbe has her BS in Business Administration from Iowa State University and a CPA certification. Barbe was an OLLI at DU member for five years before she accepted the position of Executive Director. During that time, she was a member of the OLLI 2020 team, a facilitator at OLLI South (primarily Mindfulness classes), a member of and later President of the OLLI South Advisory Board and finally the Curriculum Committee Chair person. Barbe’s belief in the value OLLI at DU brings to the many members it serves is evident in her commitment to the organization.
Paul Simon, OLLI Central Manager Paul’s more than 35 years experience in the news and online content industries in California, Nebraska and Colorado has included 11 years as an Associated Bureau Chief and four years as an editor at the Denver Post. His term as governor of the Colorado-Wyoming Optimist District runs Oct. 1, 2016-Sept. 30, 2017 and he served five years as volunteer chair of the Optimist Brain Bowl, coordinating hundreds of volunteers annually. He holds a MA in Mass Communication and a BS in Journalism.
Darcy VanWagner, OLLI Central Operations Manager Darcey has 18 years experience in the financial industry. She has managed different operations and customer services departments. She has also been involved in public education and on the board of the local school. Darcy is glad to be part of OLLI and has enjoyed meeting a diverse group of people all eager to continue to learn and give their time.
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Debbie Loftin, Office Manager Debbie is a third-generation Denver native. She has been with OLLI since May of 2013 and is thrilled to be a part of this wonderful organization. Before joining OLLI Debbie worked for a bar exam preparation company for 15 years.
Jennifer Fortenberry, OLLI South Manager Jenny Fortenberry has been involved in education for many years. She has a BS in Elementary Education and a MA in Counseling as well as Administration and Supervision. Getting involved in lifelong learning was a natural progression for her. It’s the best job ever for an educator; all of our students want to learn, all of our facilitators are volunteers, and I don’t have to deal with parents. It’s an educator’s dream job!
Susan Schmetzer, OLLI West Manager Prior to coming to OLLI in January 2016, Susan had a rewarding 32-year career with the federal government. She worked the majority of those years for two agencies--the Department of Labor and the Department of Veterans Affairs. Highlights of her career with the VA included managing an organization of 800+ staff to support benefit programs for veterans and their dependents; and also having the opportunity to work collaboratively within the VA and with other organizations to implement new benefit programs and processes. Since retiring from the federal government, she has become involved in volunteer activities with the League of Women Voters.
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Our OLLI 2016-2017 Advisory Councils Bob Armstrong, OLLI/DU Budget & Financial Liaison
Central Bonnie Payne, President Tom Bieging Nancy Cain, Curriculum Committee Chair Glenn Cooper Lois Kay Anita Leitner Barbara Lilly Pam Murdock Seth Myers Dick Reinish
South
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OLLI is a lifeline for retirees grappling with the pervasive dilemma of how to stay physically and mentally engaged in retirement. OLLI provides an outlet for continual learning, as well as an opportunity to interact with contemporaries in a thought-provoking, stimulating environment.
Paul Mauro, President Kay Bowman Stuart Gentry Ruth Harthun Faye Hastings Gayla Solomon Sally Walling, Curriculum Committee Chair Florence Welch
West Nick Muller, President Sherma Erholm Jim Keller Karen Lindsay Peter Lohaus Tom Hughes & Gail Wilson, Curriculum Committee Co-Chairs Joan Sample Malcolm Tarkanian Al White Maggie Wohlberg
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Glenn Cooper
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OLLI Central Central Christian Church
Harvest Chapel
Ruffatto Hall, DU
3690 Cherry Creek Drive South Denver, CO (303) 871-3090
3651 S Colorado Boulevard Englewood, CO (303) 871-3090
1999 East Evans Avenue Denver, CO (303) 871-3090
OLLI South Valley View Christian Church 11004 Wildfield Lane Littleton, CO (720) 339-1379
OLLI West Jefferson Unitarian Church
Shepherd of the Hills Presbyterian Church
14350 West 32nd Avenue Golden, CO (303) 503-3992
11500 West 20th Avenue Lakewood, CO (303) 503-3992